Russia fails to launch ICBM meant to intimidate Ukraine — Defense Express

Defense Express reported the information.

According to the outlet, despite Russia’s reported plans to conduct an ICBM launch, “all indications suggest the launch simply didn’t happen.”

The article emphasizes that any such launch would have been captured on video by locals and made public.

“Observers would also have been able to see the missile in flight. Considering that the primary Russian testing ground targeted by ICBMs is the Kura range in Kamchatka, the missile’s trajectory should have been visible across a large part of Siberia and the Russian Far East — from Khanty-Mansiysk to Magadan. Yet no footage of the launch has appeared,” Defense Express noted.

The reason why the launch didn’t take place remains unclear. The outlet recalls that in 2023, Russian forces failed twice in a row to properly launch the RS-24 Yars, with both missiles veering off course.

“In the end, every missile undergoes pre-flight checks, and it’s unlikely the Kremlin would want to showcase the failure of its nuclear deterrence capabilities just ahead of potential talks between Putin and Trump,” the report states.

At the same time, Defense Express does not rule out the possibility of a malfunction early in the missile’s flight — right after launch. While the RS-24 Yars is a deeply modernized version of the Topol missile, there is always a risk of failure.

• U.S. military intelligence has released estimates covering both current stockpiles and projected production of cruise, hypersonic, and ballistic missiles not only in Russia but among other U.S. adversaries.